


mistletoe promise

by gwenstcy



Category: Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four (2015), Marvel
Genre: Christmas au!, M/M, also hanukkah bc ben is jewish, cute boys love each other, slight homophobia warning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-27 10:19:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,062
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17160200
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gwenstcy/pseuds/gwenstcy
Summary: “I thought we could make a pact...if we don’t find someone to kiss by Christmas than....we uh, kiss each other. Just to get it over with. To know. To learn. To…”A story in which Reed proposes an idea to Ben which may alter their friendship forever.





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a bet is proposed between best friends ben and reed.

They were in Reed’s garage, as usual, working on their chemistry final project. As much as Reed knew about physics, chemistry must not be as forte as he mixed the incorrect chemicals together. Twice. 

“Reed! Snap out of it!” Ben came into the space with a towel, mopping up the splatter of their failed attempts off the walls. He goes to the bathroom for two minutes and comes back to this. Normally, science was Reed’s number one focus. What had gotten into him?

“Shit, I’m sorry. Here, let me do it.” Reed reached out for the towel, but brushed against Ben’s fingers and recoiled. 

“Uh-huh.” Ben rolled his eyes. “I don’t think you’re equipped for the mess, judging by how you flinched from the chemicals.” 

Reed looked puzzled. You know, for an A+ genius, he could be really stupid sometimes. 

“The chemicals...on my hands, that you touched...and jumped back.” Ben explained this agonizingly slowly. It wasn’t often he could make fun of Reed for being an idiot. He had to take advantage of this opportunity

“Oh...right.” Reed blushed and turned back to the project, focusing on a level so intense, it seemed like Ben wasn’t in the room. When he would occasionally offer his help, Reed would brush him off with a “I’ve got it” or “Thanks, but I’m good”. This happened to the point where Ben eventually left and Reed didn’t even notice. 

~

The next day at school Reed seemed even more distant. Reed tended to get lost in his thoughts, but would always tell Ben what he was thinking, normally along the lines of a new idea for their years in the making experiment, or some gripe about his stepdad. This time though, Ben felt miles away from his friend. Often too, Ben could tell what Reed was thinking through his facial expressions, a power that developed over years of friendships. Today though, Reed’s face was a blank slate. 

“Everything okay, Reed? You seem far away.” Ben nudged his friend across his desk. 

Reed jumped from Ben’s touch and turned fixadetly away from his friend. “Just thinking about what battle I’m going to choose for this report.” 

No he wasn’t. 

“Are you mad at me or something?” Ben was frustrated, but also a little hurt, which was evident in his voice. 

Reed shook his head.

“You won’t even look at me! Or barely speak to me!” Ben raised his voice slightly, capturing the attention of a few other students around them. 

“Not now, please.” Reed’s tone had a begging quality to it that made Ben’s anger crumble slightly. But he wasn’t going to let Reed know that. 

Ben didn’t respond and turned his attention to their teacher, who had just stood up and was about to start class. He avoided Reed at lunch, instead using the pitching machine on the baseball field as a way to cope with his anger. 

Baseball was always the way Ben dealt with his feelings. It calmed his mind and gave him something to focus on. Hitting a ball at 80 miles per hour definitely helped appease his anger. Ben stood alone on the field, despite the near freezing weather, whacking ball after ball until the bell rang for next period. 

Thankfully, Ben had Literature without Reed. Ben was in AP Lit, the only class he was better at than his highly intelligent best friend. Reed didn’t have much patience for fiction, he much preferred to learn the inner workings, but Ben was content to escape to another world in his stories. 

The class began and ended quickly, providing Ben a nice distraction to whatever was going on with Reed. Ben knew most people thought it was weird; how much time the two spent together, how they seemed to be each other’s only friends. The thing was, Reed and Ben were both very socially awkward in very different ways. Reed came across as if he only cared about science and had a hard time making friends that way. He really did have a wonderful heart, but few were willing to look past the endless spout of seemingly useless knowledge he threw out. 

Ben was another story altogether. He grew up being told he would never amount to anything by his father who walked out on his family in their time of need. His mother worked two, sometimes three jobs throughout his childhood to make ends meet and was rarely home. Ben’s older brother was a monster. His anger at their absent father caused him to lash out for attention and when that didn’t work, he bullied his younger brother to make himself feel powerful. Daniel was now well into his twenties, but still lived at home. He never finished high school and worked at the family junkyard, but mainly drank liquor with his gang friends and beat up his younger brother. 

So Ben didn’t have friends because whenever he got close to someone as a child, they wanted to come to his house and hang out. Ben would freak out and find a ridiculous reason to cut them out of his life. This tended to give him an asshole reputation, but maybe they were right. Children are so impressionable, and Ben’s was spent being told he was nothing, with the bruises to show for it. He didn’t think he deserved friendship, until Reed came along.  
It certainly helped that their friendship seemed fairly one-sided at first. Ben was more Reed’s lab partner, or better yet, glorified assistant in the beginning, but as they got older their friendship became more of a real friendship. Reed was the only person Ben had even slightly opened up to and his friend’s sympathy warmed Ben’s heart. 

The shove of a hand against his back caused Ben to jump back into reality jarringly. He whipped around with balled fists, causing the student behind him to recoil. He had forgotten where he was. Shit. Now everyone was looking at him in fear. Turns out, they had all already been looking at him since the teacher had called on Ben and he hadn’t responded. The kid behind him had been trying to alert him to this fact, but Ben’s survival instinct caused him to freak everyone out, making him look like the bad guy yet again. 

“I’m sorry, what were you saying?” Ben looked his teacher in the eye, red in the face, struggling to keep an even tone. 

“I asked what you thought about Daisy’s disloyalty.” Mr. Manning glanced at Ben pointedly.

“I think everyone expects too much of her. So what, she gets back with Gatsby? Maybe he’s her true love, maybe he isn’t, but he makes her happy. Isn’t happiness what we strive for beyond all else anyways? Yes with happiness, money and love might be included but above else, we are selfish creatures and wish for our own well-being, whatever that might mean depends on the individual. Daisy finds happiness through Gatsby and even though their relationship causes more harm than good, it’s what gives her joy in the moment, despite the tragedy that awaits in the future.” The words poured out of Ben’s mouth in a frenzy, desperate to break the silence in the classroom and to make the stares of his classmates mean something more than just fear. Ben didn’t want to seem the scary, fearless bully when in fact he was the frightened one.

Mr. Manning simply nodded and continued on with the lesson. When the bell rang, he called Ben to the front to speak with him, which he had never done before. This couldn’t work out well for Ben. 

“Hello Ben, how are you?” Mr. Manning smiled warmly, leaning his hands back against the desk. 

“Fine, thanks.” Ben answered warily. 

“That was an interesting point you brought up in class today.” 

“Was it?” Ben answered distractedly. 

“Yes, it was. I hope you know how intelligent you are Ben. You normally seem a bit unsure of yourself, even though your responses have so much potential. English really is your strong suit.” Mr. Manning never broke eye contact, seeming to look straight into Ben’s soul.

“I appreciate that.” Ben replied. Mr. Manning gave him a small nod. “Er...is that all?” Ben’s tone reeked of hope. 

“No, no…” Mr. Manning gave a slight chuckle and then seemed to look at Ben even more intently than before. “Is everything okay? You seem to be really shaken up about something. I want you to know if you ever need to talk anyone, you can trust me. If anything is going on at home...well, I’m here and would love to help you work through whatever is going on.” 

Well. This was not what Ben had expected at all. He’d never had a positive role model, let alone a positive male role model, a father figure. No one had ever offered to listen to his problems, or wanted to help him solve them. No one except-

Ben’s phone dinged in his pocket and he whipped it out quickly to avoid to uncertainty of this situation. It was a text from Reed. 

“I’m sorry about earlier. Can we talk? If you can meet me at my car. Please.” 

“I, uh, thank you Mr. Manning. That’s really nice. I was just distracted today. I gotta go though, my ride home is waiting for me.” Ben held his phone up for proof. 

“Ok Ben, but I’m here. Anytime. Just let me know.” He smiled warmly and walked Ben to the door. 

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Ben smiled and left the room, wondering what Reed had to say.

~~~~~~~~~  
Reed was standing against his car, waiting for Ben, his eyes searching the jumble of students pouring out of the various school buildings, ready for the weekend. Ben couldn’t help but smile at Reed’s focused face. His eyebrows were furrowed together in concentration and his lips turned down, forming a slight pout. 

“Hey.” Ben called and Reed whipped around at the sound of his voice. 

“Hey!” Reed replied nervously and louder than need be, turning many heads in his direction. 

Ben reached Reed and they both stood next to the car awkwardly, until the person in the car next to them beeped the horn, trying to back out while these silent losers stood in the way. 

Both boys silently got in the car and Reed finally attempted to break the tension. 

“Thank you for coming.” His voice was oddly formal, like he was pitching an idea at a business meeting rather than talking to his best friend since childhood. 

“Yeah. Sure...so where are we going?” Ben’s voice had a hint of impatience to it. He didn’t want to just sit here forever while he waited for Reed to get his act together. Maybe that was a bit harsh, but he hated how distant Reed had been lately. He was the only one Ben could talk to and he was so alone without him, as much as he hated to admit it. Ben didn’t want to rely on anyone that heavily, he knew people could let him down so easily. Reed had never let him down before though, so there was that. 

“Where do you want to go? We could get coffee, or food...I’m buying.” Reed smiled, flashing his teeth at Ben. 

“You don’t have to pay for my food.” Ben mumbled. Money was a touchy subject between the two. Ben, having very little, Reed having very much. Reed wanted to share his wealth with Ben, Ben didn’t want charity from anybody. 

“I owe you though. For being...weird.” Ben raised an eyebrow at Reed. “Well, weirder than usual.” He chuckled slightly.

Ben wanted to say that Reed didn’t owe him anything, they didn’t have to be there for each other every single day, that’s not what normal friends do. Normal friends spend their time with other people and don’t solely rely on one person to provide them happiness and understanding. Ben used to believe that their friendship was mainly focused on Reed. Now he worried their friendship was more about him, mooching off of Reed’s kindness and sympathy. He wanted to say all of this, but of course he said none of it. Instead, he simply nodded and said. “How about the diner?”

Reed drove slowly, careful as ever. He was singing softly, yet still off-key to some indie band that was totally not Ben’s style, but he didn’t mind. Besides, Reed was really cute, in his element like this. Hold up. Did Ben really just think that? He turned to Reed and looked at him closely. His glasses were sliding down his nose as he bobbed his head to the beat. Reed absentmindedly brushed his fingers against them, guiding them higher on his face. Ben’s gaze followed, eventually settling on Reed’s coffee-colored eyes. Reed’s imperfect eyes were small, beady, and slightly too far apart from each other, but they were pretty. His curly hair bounced atop his head, elongating his already large face. Reed was not conventionally handsome. But, as Ben was just now realizing, Ben found him to be extremely attractive. Oh fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck fuck-

“Earth to Ben!” Reed was waving his hand in front of Ben’s face, a smirk plastered on his face. “What were you thinking about?” he asked kindly. 

How was it that the past few days, Reed had been the flustered, distant one and now Ben was the one who had no idea what to say?

“Uh, Mr. Manning, my lit teacher, asked to talk to me today. He, uh, said I was a really good student….said if I ever needed anything he was always there.” Ben did his best to skirt around the part that explained why Mr. Manning had asked if he needed anything. He thought something was wrong. 

“That’s weird, why would he say that?” Reed’s eyebrows furrowed together adorably. 

Ben shrugged. 

“That’s a little...creepy isn’t it?” Reed turned to Ben while they stopped at a red light. 

“No, no, I was just tired today, probably seemed a little off…” Ben shrunk in his seat, trying to seem as okay as possible. 

Reed scanned Ben’s face and body, causing Ben to squirm. He knew what Reed was doing, but still, having Reed’s eyes trail his body...When Reed seemed satisfied than Ben had no visible injuries, he looked Ben in the eyes. 

“Is everything ok Ben?” Reed’s arm held the back of Ben’s seat and Ben could feel his friend’s breath on his face he was so close holy-

The car behind them beeped their horn as the light turned green and Reed’s car remained motionless.

“You gotta drive Reed.” Ben muttered. 

“Fuck them. I’m not going anywhere until you answer my question.” The look in Reed’s eyes was so intense, Ben just wanted the grab his face and-

The car behind them laid on the horn this time, not letting up. 

“Yes, yes, I am fine.” Ben placed his hand on Reed’s arm reassuringly. Reed jumped back and hit the gas pedal, hard enough to throw Ben’s head against the seat and give him whiplash. 

After that awkward encounter, the rest of the car ride was spent in silence, both boys agreeing it was probably best to wait until the restaurant to continue their conversation. Reed’s occasional singing of his weird-ass music sliced through the quiet and made Ben smile despite himself. 

Finally, they pulled up to the restaurant. The Diner was an old establishment on the opposite side of town from anything worth notice. It was a dingy building that probably hadn’t been painted since the place opened in the fifties. Perhaps the fact that it was so far away and so visually unappealing that drove Ben to this place. Despite it’s ugly exterior, the food was delicious and the waitresses were so sweet, always trying to give Ben free dessert. As cliche as it sounds, it is what’s on the inside that counts. 

Soon enough, the boys were in one of the cracked vinyl booths studying the menu to the tune of fifties swing music. Even though both boys had visited the restaurant probably dozens of times before and ordered the exact same thing every time, they always looked at the menu with intense concentration as if this weren’t the case. 

“Hi boys, the usual?” The waitress smiled down at the boys. 

“Sure.” Reed smiled and gathered the menus for her. 

“So…” Ben started after she left, ready to get this conversation over with, whatever it was about. 

“Patience, Ben. We must have our milkshakes before we get serious.” Reed grinned but his eyes portrayed the lightness of his tone. He was scared. 

After an agonizing couple of minutes of small talk (they never were good at the simple form of interaction), their milkshakes were delivered by the friendly waitress. Strawberry for Ben, chocolate for Reed, as always. 

They both began slurping them down almost immediately, as if they had been crawling around the desert for days and this was their first sweet taste of hydration. 

“So…” Ben started again, slightly more insistent this time. 

Reed sighed and looked like he had half a mind to run out of the restaurant. 

“Ben. Be honest with me. Have you ever kissed anyone?” Reed couldn’t look Ben in the eyes, not directly, but glanced upward at his reaction as he finished. 

Ben was...well that was not what he was expecting, to say the least. This innocent question had too much meaning behind it and it obviously scared both of them. This was especially concerning to Ben, as the question automatically drew his eyes to Reed’s thin lips. Oh god, they were covered in chocolate. Ben could totally just lick that-

Shit, shit, shit, shit, what the fuck, what the actual fucking fuck?! What had gotten into him? Why was Ben suddenly so physically attracted to his best friend? Ok, maybe it wasn’t so sudden. It may have happened a few times before, but this much in one day? Ben couldn’t take it. Especially where there conversation was headed. 

Ben swallowed, his adam’s apple bobbing. He shook his head quite vigorously, as if repulsed by the idea. Cool it, Ben. Ok. “No...no, not yet.” Ben tried to ease the tension but just ended up making eyes at Reed when he said ‘yet’. He couldn’t help it!

“Right. Er- me either. Obviously. Heh. I’ve been thinking about it and, well, this is our senior year. It’s the holidays, which means a slew of romantic movies and...mistletoe. Basically it seems as if the world is encouraging everyone to kiss during this ‘joyous season’.” Reed rambled and Ben didn’t understand what he was getting at. 

“Ok...what are you trying to say?” Ben’s tone sounded frustrated, even though he didn’t feel frustrated, well not at Reed, more at his crazy, random desire. He could tell Reed took it rather bad though as he flushed and stumbled over his words. 

“Well, I think, well I thought...isn’t it kinda sad not to have had your first kiss at eighteen? We’re on the cusp of it Ben, it’s almost here. And so is graduation! Also it’s not just sad it’s...don’t you want the experience? Imagine how long it could be before we ever kiss someone, at that point in our lives we should definitely at least know how to kiss and are probably expected to be good at it right? But how can we be good at it if we’ve never done it?” 

Ben was even more confused than before. “So...you want to kiss someone?” 

Reed took a deep breath. Whatever he was going to say next couldn’t be good. “I know this is weird. And if it’s too weird I get it. But just hear me out ok?” 

Ben nodded and Reed continued in earnest.

“I thought we could make a pact...if we don’t find someone to kiss by Christmas than....we uh, kiss each other. Just to get it over with. To know. To learn. To…” Reed trailed off, out of reasons. 

Ben was taken aback and didn’t know how to answer. Sure, he obviously wanted to kiss Reed. But if he accepted this deal, he’d have to figure out his feelings. He’d need to know why he wanted to kiss Reed. Maybe it was like Reed said and he just wanted to get it over with. Maybe Reed was his sexual awakening that he was gay, but who was he kidding, Ben already knew that, as much as he hated to admit it. The scariest maybe of all though was that maybe Ben had deeper feelings for Reed. As scary as that was though, there was only one way to find out. It was time for Ben to finally be honest with himself. And maybe Reed too. 

“A mistletoe promise?” Ben couldn’t hide a smirk. 

Reed laughed quietly, still nervous. “You always were better with words.” 

“I know.” Ben nodded. “What happens if one of us finds someone to kiss and the other doesn’t?”

“I, uh, I didn’t think about that…” Reed shook his head. Ben was surprised. Normally Reed thought out every plan he put into motion, with a backup plan, and a backup for the backup. 

“How about it’s all or nothing? Even if one of us succeeds, it doesn’t count unless both of us do. So that still reverts to...us.” Ben’s voice gave out on the last word, it was so quiet he wondered if Reed heard. 

“So do you agree?” Reed asked with a tone of...hope?

“I do. Except you know I’m Jewish.” Ben deadpanned.

“Oh yeah, I know. I just thought Hanukkah is only two weeks away and Christmas is four…I just wanted time to be on our side.” Reed smiled, his nerves seemed at ease, while Ben’s were still full throttle. 

He wanted time to be on their side? So he wanted more time to find someone else to kiss? Did Reed already have someone he wanted to kiss? Was he desperately trying to avoid kissing Ben? 

Ben should not have gotten himself into this mess.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woohoo! part 1 of my sappy story is up. in the spirit of christmas, I will be uploading the rest later today. thanks for reading, lemme know what you think below, comments always make my day


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ben and reed navigate school, work, and hanukkah in the days of december leading up to their bet.

~~~~~~~~~  
Day 1

Ben did not normally get like this. He was pragmatic and simply tried to get by. His big dreams only involved getting a college degree. That was all. He didn’t care what type of job he had, as long as he could get by. He didn’t care about where he lived, or who he was with. Until now. 

Reed had always meant everything to Ben, but it was only recently that he realized the full extent of that. Then again, all he realized was that he really wanted to kiss Reed. That might not mean Ben is in love with his best friend. No, it could just mean what Reed said: he wanted to get his first kiss over with. He hoped. 

Ben had no idea how to go about this. Was he supposed to just look for someone he wanted to kiss? If so, the answer was right in front of him, leaning over a magnifying glass, swatting his curls out of his face. 

“Ben, you have to see this!” Reed waved him over excitedly. Oh god, he was so cute when he talked about science. 

“The cells are mutating, see?” Ben could feel Reed’s breath against his neck as he looked into the microscope. He couldn’t take this for much longer. Damn, this was going to be a long couple of weeks.   
“I do see.” Ben pulled away from the microscope and his best friend. 

“You don’t seem too excited about it.” Reed frowned slightly. 

“I’m just...I didn’t get very much sleep last night.” Ben said offhandedly. No big deal, lack of sleep was always a good excuse that usually worked. 

“Why? Is everything okay?” Reed instantly turned serious. He turned towards Ben, knocking his long legs against him. His eyes stared deeply and concernedly into his friend. Reed cared so much it almost hurt. Ben didn’t know what to do about it. Especially when Reed was making him feel some kind of way. 

“You asked me that yesterday.” Ben mumbled not quite meeting Reed’s gaze. He knew saying he was fine while not even being able to look Reed in the eyes was not very convincing, but he just couldn’t. 

“You also said you were tired yesterday. You also said you were a “little off”.” Reed’s tone was strict and Ben turned away. He didn’t enjoy being treated like a child. 

“Hey. It’s just that we haven’t talked about it in a while, you know? You’re my friend Ben, I want you to be treated well.” Reed’s voice softened. He touched Ben’s shoulder and delicately turned him around to face him. 

The obvious ‘it’ they hadn’t talked about in a while was Ben’s home life. When Ben first told Reed about his brother’s bullying and his mother’s negligence, it meant constant sleepovers. Reed must have let his mom in on it, which Ben didn’t mind. It was evident she didn’t know the full extent of the issues (Reed didn’t even know the full extent), or else she would have done a lot more than just let Ben sleep over and give him pitying looks. It was fun at first, but then they got older and their dynamic changed. They were older and older boys didn’t have sleepovers with each other. It was an unspoken agreement between the two that the sleepovers stopped once the gay rumors became torment. Reed knew Ben had enough trouble at home with his brother to deal with, he didn’t need it at school either. There was no way for them to stop what the whole school already believed, but they did stop doing everything together. 

Ben drove to Reed’s house less often after school and got a job at the drugstore down the street from his house. At first, every shift he wished he were in Reed’s garage instead, but then he grew up. He was sixteen years old and was working to support his family. Obviously he wasn’t the breadwinner of the Grimm family, but he worked harder than Daniel, who solely smoked pot with his gang and terrorized Ben. Reed found it sad that Ben had to abandon his youth so soon, but Ben wasn’t. He was Jewish, it was in his blood. He was thankful to be here now, and not seventy years ago when he would’ve worked to death, literally. 

So Reed and Ben had grown apart over the past year or so, but they were still closer to each other than anyone else. School was hard on both of them, the ridicule was too much that they didn’t want to be seen together. Ben didn’t have much time after school because of work and the friends saw each other once a week, if they were lucky. 

One day though, and this was the day everything changed for Ben he thinks, Reed seemingly had enough. It was spring of their junior year and Jack Bennett, king of the jocks was harassing Ben with the oh-so-classic shove into a row of lockers. 

“What do you want from me, asshole?” Ben tried to wriggle out of his grip. He was strong, but compared to Bennett, he was about as intimidating as a toddler. Ben was short, but stocky. 

“Oh I just wanted to say hello to my favorite faggot!” Bennett sneered and Ben’s face turned red. He could feel the bruise on his arm from an attack from his brother digging into the locker. His brother had used the same fucking word. 

Bennett opened his mouth to deliver another jeer, but was interrupted by a polite tap on the shoulder. He turned around to find...Reed Richards. 

“Oh good, another f-” Bennett was cut off by a punch to the nose, delivered by done other than Reed fucking Richards. 

Reed’s face was contorted in anger as Bennett’s head hit the lockers behind him and he sank to the ground, clutching his injured nose. 

“Never say that word again.” Ben had never heard Reed sound so menacing and serious before. It was kinda...hot.

“C’mon Ben.” Reed offered Ben a small, secret smile. 

Ben stood still, with his mouth hanging slightly open. He couldn’t help it, he felt like he was in an episode of the Twilight Zone. This must be an alternate dimension Reed, or a clone. Where did he learn to punch like that?

Reed mistook Ben’s gaze for fear rather than awe and approached him slowly. 

“Sorry, I couldn’t take it anymore. I miss you.” Reed whispered, focusing solely on Ben, who couldn’t take his eyes off of this badass who somehow replaced his best friend. 

“I missed you too.” Ben nodded slowly, looking up at Reed in wide-eyed wonder. 

“Then let’s get out of here.” Reed laughed and gently grabbed Ben by the elbow, leading him down the hallway full of surprised onlookers.   
“Bennnn” Reed drawled playfully. His eyes were full of concern though, as Ben was dragged out of his memory and back into the present moment. Right. Reed was worried about him. 

“I’m sorry, Reed. I’ve just got a lot on my mind. And I really am just tired. I’ve been working almost every day after school and on weekends, then I get home and have to make food and do my homework. I’m also freaking out about college applications because I know I’m doing them late but it took a while to find money for the application fees and to convince my mom to let me leave, even if I go locally. So, sorry, but you’ve been distant too. I know it was about the...promise, but still.” This was all true, but of course Ben left out the fact that he couldn’t stop staring at Reed’s lips and having a near heart attack whenever Reed licked them, which was frequently, as he did it when he was concentrating on something. 

Reed was undeterred. “So nothing’s going on at home?” Reed’s hand was still on Ben’s shoulder and as he tried to turn, shying away from the attention, Reed’s grip tightened. It wasn’t uncomfortable, just firm. Ben was unbelievably turned on. 

“No!” In Ben’s mind, this was a yell. In reality, it was a high-pitched squeal.

Reed instantly let go and held his hands up in surrender. The look on his face told Ben he was somewhat hurt by Ben’s aggression and he had a right to be. Reed was trying to show he cared and Ben kept pushing him away, just not for the reason Reed thought. 

The rest of the class period was spent in a quiet frenzy of work. It felt oddly familiar. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Day 8 

“That’ll be $4.59 ma’am.” Ben did his best to smile at the old woman slowly pulling change out of her coinpurse to purchase a lipstick far too bright for her skin tone. 

The woman snatched the bag out of his hand without saying thank you and walked out of the store. Oh, how Ben loved the holiday season. People thought they had the right to be assholes simply because they were sooo busy being charitable and buying gifts for others. 

Ben’s watch beeped, alerting him that another hour had gone by. It was now 9:00, meaning he had very few customers to deal with before he left at ten, save for a few stragglers getting last-minute items. While Ben was happy not to deal with people this late into his shift (he had already used up so much energy in fake smiles), that meant all he had to keep him company were his own thoughts, which had been quite odd lately. 

Ever since the bet started, or if we’re being honest, before the bet started, Ben couldn’t get Reed out of his mind. This wasn’t abnormal in the sense that he was thinking about Reed often, they were best friends after all. All the memories they’ve shared, projects they were working on, Reed was bound to cross his mind every once in a while. Lately it had been different though. He could spend half an hour simply envisioning Reed’s lips (sometimes brushing against Ben’s own). Fantasies of he and Reed had played out in his head all week, some simple, like holding hands while taking a walk in the park. But some, some were downright otherworldly. Ben was locked away in a castle and Reed had to slay a dragon to save him. Wait, wasn’t that a movie already? Never mind, it didn’t matter. 

Ben was so scared. What if Reed had someone else he wanted to kiss and that’s why he made the bet? What if Ben’s feelings ruined their friendship. Because he couldn’t deny it any longer he liked-

“Ahem.” A tall man approached him at checkout. Ben blushed. 

“Sorry sir, I-” Ben couldn’t look him in the eyes, but as he glanced upward, he saw the man absentmindedly push a curl out of his face, just like…

“Reed!” Ben’s voice came out much more high-pitched than he intended to. He sounded like a middle school girl talking to her crush, which really, he was. 

“Hi! I just came for these, um, pretzels.” Reed smiled and handed Ben the bag, laughing somewhat...nervously? He placed his hand on the back of his neck and smiled. 

“Oh, okay..” Ben struggled to return the smile. This was weird. He was serving his friend, his...who knows what Reed was to Ben at this point. 

“Actually, I, uh, came to see you too. I figured the store probably wouldn’t be too busy right now…” He was right. Ben and Reed were the only two in the store. In their sleepy town, few people were still out at this time and if they were, they weren’t coming to the little convenience store on the edge of the county line. 

“Oh! Yeah, uh, it’s boring as ever...I did have an elderly lady come in earlier though and buy out our entire stock of condoms…” That was stupid. And weird. And definitely not funny. What was he thinking? 

Ben’s inner monologue of self-depreciation was interrupted by a giggle from Reed. Ben had never heard him giggle before. 

Ben started to ask how Reed’s day was at the same time Reed asked him if he was doing anything for Hanukkah. They both laughed awkwardly. They didn’t used to be like this. This bet was going to change everything, wasn’t it?

“You first.” Reed smiled, opening the bag of pretzels he had already paid for and offered some to Ben. He leaned over the counter, decidedly too close for comfort. 

“Well, if mom is home we’ll light the menorah you know, I don’t know if we’ll have many presents, if any. But that’s totally fine, I don’t need anything. I just wish we could all go to synagogue together, but with mom’s work and Daniel being..” 

“A huge asshole?” Reed prompted. 

“Yeah, that...I don’t know. We’ll see I guess.” Ben shrugged, trying not to show how disappointed he was. Ben was actually far more religious than people would think and did enjoy going to temple, but sometimes it was too hard to go alone. Especially around the holidays. Seeing all the happy families together celebrating the joyous holiday, holding hands, knowing they’re going home to traditional food and presents, it hurt. This time of year Ben really wished he had a real family. 

“I don’t know if I’m allowed or anything, because I’m, uh, Catholic, but if you wanted...I’d love to go to synagogue with you.” Reed eyed Ben earnestly.

Ben stopped mid-chew. “Really?” He asked, mouthful of pretzels.

“Of course. If it’s important to you, it’s important to me. Plus, I’d love to experience a celebration of another religion. Catholics don’t really know how to celebrate.” Reed scrunched up his nose. He wasn’t a big fan of Catholicism, because of their “antiquated views”, but he never explained what those were to Ben. 

“Wow, um, okay. I get my work schedule for next week tomorrow, can I let you know then?” Ben was reminded he did have a real family. There were no blood ties between them, but Reed had always been there for him, where it mattered. All the more reason to keep his feelings and...urges under control. He couldn’t afford to lose Reed. 

Reed nodded. “Do you get off soon?” 

“Ten.” 

“Can I hang out with you until then?” Reed asked with eyes full of hope. 

“You want to hang out here?” Ben squinted at his friend skeptically. 

“It doesn’t matter where, I just want to hang out with you. We have a lot of lost time to make up for, with us basically having split up when everyone started spreading those rumors.” Reed was rarely this candid. Also, didn’t “split up” normally imply a romantic relationship? 

Reed and Ben spent the next hour talking about anything and everything. Ben talked about his batting average, Reed talked about his college prospects, what movies or TV shows were good. They even talked about stupid stuff, like who would win in a fight, Godzilla or a T-Rex? On the surface, it was as if their friendship was back to normal and they were just innocent kids again. Before kids even knew what gay was and therefore couldn’t accuse them of being so. It wasn’t ever being called gay that bothered, Ben though. Even if it weren’t true, why should he care? It was only because these kids shot out the idea of simple love being disgusting and unnatural. For the first time, Ben realized Reed might believe the same thing. 

~~~~~~~~

Day 15

“I didn’t know what to wear. I hope this is okay.” Reed pulled at his necktie uncomfortably. Reed was in his finest outfit, which very unfortunately was quite a few inches too short since this outfit was bought once Reed was believed to have stopped growing. Soon after though, Reed shot up a couple more inches and his mom couldn’t afford to make the same mistake again, dropping a couple hundred more on formal wear for her giant son. 

“You look great.” Ben blurted before thinking. He nearly clapped his hand over his mouth, but tried to play it off as normal as possible, as if he often told his best friend how great he looked. He really did look great though. Despite Reed’s obvious discomfort at the itchy getup and of course, the length, Ben thought he looked beautiful. The imperfections of the outfit were endearing, the shortness of it just made Reed look cute. God, how was he going to make it through the night without forcibly making out with his best friend?

The boys had barely talked about the bet since it had started two weeks ago. Ben had offhandedly asked him a few days ago how the search for someone to kiss was going, to which Reed simply replied “I like my chances.” And Ben might have imagined this, but he thought, maybe, Reed even winked at him. 

“You don’t look too bad yourself. I love the hat. I’ve never seen you wear it. What’s it called again?” 

“A yamaka.” Ben smiled at Reed’s interest. 

“Well, you are absolutely rocking that yamaka, Ben.” Ben knew he was somewhat joking, but he couldn’t help but blush. 

“Ready?” Reed smiled his adorable lopsided smile and Ben nodded vigorously, following him out into the cold night. 

~  
Reed thoroughly enjoyed the service, consistently staring up at the ceiling, marveling at the beauty of the building. He did his best to sing along and recite verses from the Torah, but he did a humorously bad job, having never spoken a word of Hebrew before. Ben applauded his effort though. Ben felt very warm inside throughout the night and while he knew it was the beautiful stories and presence of God, he knew Reed being there also had something to do with it. 

At the end of the service, all of the people joined hands and prayed silently for the last few minutes. The lights were dimmed until the darkness was only killed by the light of flickering candles. Reed’s face glowed behind the illumination of the candles and Ben knew he was in love with him. He looked like an angel, which he was to Ben. Ben couldn’t tear his eyes away from the beautiful boy. Reed caught his eye and held his hand out to Ben, offering a small smile. Ben’s heart raced as he grasped the hand he had longed to hold. At first, he worried his grip was too tight, or that his hand was too sweaty. He realized though that it didn’t matter. He wanted to enjoy this beautiful moment he had desired so strongly. He closed his eyes and prayed, and prayed, and prayed, and prayed. He prayed for his mother. He prayed for his brother. He even prayed for his father. His one secret, selfish prayer was for Reed to love him too. 

After the lights came back up and the service ended, Ben found he was still holding hands with Reed. Reed seemed to notice it too as they locked eyes and looked away. Ben began to loosen his grip, but Reed’s didn’t falter. Ben turned to face him, but Reed stared decisively ahead. People began to clear out and Reed gently nudged Ben forward, who was gaping at him like a fish. His gaze then turned towards their hands and he couldn’t help but smile. Reed had perfected his poker face so Ben couldn’t tell what he was thinking, but he didn’t let go of Ben’s hand until he started driving. 

“Goodnight, Ben.” They had driven back in silence, but not an uncomfortable one. It seemed they were mulling over the beauty of the night, in more ways that one. 

“Goodnight, Reed.” Ben started to open the door, but hesitated. Before he could think twice, he launched himself towards Reed. He embraced his best friend, hugging him tightly with closed eyes. Reed was obviously suprised, but he hugged Ben right back. 

“Thank you.” Ben mumbled into Reed’s chest. He pulled away reluctantly, grazing his arms across Reed’s and left. 

What a night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ooh hand holding! we're getting there folks! hope you're enjoying this adventure with me, I sure have loved writing it.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> as christmas approaches, ben worries about what he should do about his feelings for reed.

Day 20  
~~~~~~~~~~~

It was the last day of school before winter break and the students couldn’t be more excited. Except Ben. After the beautiful night a few days ago, he had gone back to being scared. Now, the bet was coming to an end. In just a few days, he was going to kiss Reed. He knew now that Reed hadn’t found anyone to kiss, he would have heard about it, because that was the deal. Ben spent his last period of lit tapping his fingers on the desk and shaking his leg, but not because he was excited for break to start. He was invited over to Reed’s for Christmas for obvious reasons, but had nothing to do until then. He only had two more shifts at the convenience store, which was closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas. The rest of the time would be spent lying in anxious wait. 

Ben’s thoughts were interrupted by the bell, alerting the students that they finally had their freedom for the next few weeks. Ben’s classmates leaped out of their seats and walked out of the door, a jumble of chatter that Ben wasn’t a part of. He struggled to stuff everything into his backpack and soon found he was the only one left in the room, save for Mr. Manning. 

“Any plans for the break, Ben?” Mr. Manning asked Ben in a friendly voice. 

If only he knew. “Uh, not really. I’m Jewish so...what about you?” 

“Just spending time with the family. Not before I finish grading these essays though.” He smiled at Ben. He really was a nice guy, could Ben trust him? Reed was the person he told everything, but this was the one thing he couldn’t…

“Ben? You spaced out there for a bit.” 

“Have you ever fallen for a friend?” Ben blurted out of nowhere. 

“Yes, actually, I have.” Mr. Manning smiled, reliving his memories, so it seemed. 

“Who?” Ben’s voice was full of curiosity and his teacher could tell, deciding to indulge him. 

“My wife. We’ve been married for ten years as of last week.” 

“Wow…congrats.” That was not the answer he was expecting. 

“Thank you, Ben.” 

“Weren’t you scared? That they wouldn’t like you back and that your friendship would be ruined?” Mr. Manning picked up on his use of pronouns and his smile turned knowing. 

“If you’re talking about Reed Richards, I don’t think you need to worry.” 

“Wha-what are you talking about?” Ben’s face turned red and he steeled himself, waiting for the taunting, or at least, as much as a teacher was allowed to taunt without losing his job. 

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that. I saw what happened with that bully, Jack Bennett, when Reed punched him. I know I’m a teacher and I’m supposed to stay out of this type of thing, but Reed wouldn’t have done that if he didn’t really care for you.” Mr. Manning spoke calmly and evenly, loosening Ben’s strained fists slightly. 

“Of course he cares for me, he’s my best friend!” Ben’s defense faltered, even he sounded unsure. 

Mr. Manning shrugged. “All I’m saying is it took a lot for Reed to throw that punch. I’m not trying to convince you to do anything and I’m certainly not saying it’s a bad thing. I think it’s wonderful how much you two seem to care for each other. What happens next is up to you.” Well, he wasn’t wrong. 

“Oh, and to answer your question, you can never be positive that your friendship won’t change, or as you said, be ruined, but sometimes that’s a risk worth taking.” 

Ben nodded. “Thank you. Really, thank you. I hope you have a nice break.” 

“It’s my pleasure Ben, really. I’m really glad you came to me with this, I hope I was some help. Oh, and Ben?” 

“Hm?” Ben was already halfway out the door. 

“Good luck.” 

Day 25  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
The day was finally here and Ben had decided what he was going to. He was absolutely terrified, but he had to know if Reed felt the same way about him. Ben took a deep breath and rang the doorbell of the Richards house. He heard the footsteps approach and the unhooking of the latch. Ben smiled as the door opened. It was go time. 

“Ben! Welcome, welcome. Come on it sweetheart!” Ben’s smile faltered slightly.

“Hi, Mrs. Richards, thanks for inviting me.” Ben followed her inside the house. He had worked up his courage for Reed to be the one opening the door and now he had to do it all over again. 

“Reed’s upstairs in his room, honey, you can head up there. I’ll call you boys when the food is ready.” She smiled encouragely at Ben, who held out the tinfoil tray he had brought in. 

“I made brownies, I wanted to contribute something and I know Reed likes them.” 

“Oh, you are so sweet, thank you Ben! You didn’t have to bring anything, but we will definitely enjoy them. Baking certainly isn’t my arena.” She smiled and squeezed Ben’s arm. He had forgotten how much he loved Mrs. Richards. 

Ben bounded up the stairs to find Reed. He wondered when they were going to...fulfill their promise. No, that sounds weird. He wanted to know when he and Reed were going to kiss. He knocked on the cracked door that led to Reed’s bedroom. 

“Come in!” Reed hollered. 

Ben entered the threshold and Reed squinted at the figure in front of him. His glasses were off and he couldn’t see clearly, but it was obvious Ben wasn’t who he was expecting. 

“Ben! Hey!” Reed struggled to cover his bare chest with his clothes he was halfway done changing into. Ben ogled him shamelessly, figuring Reed couldn’t catch him do it without his glasses. 

“Hey.” Ben’s voice came out unintentionally breathless and dreamy. 

Reed grabbed his glasses and threw a shirt over his head. He hopped out of his bed and made his way over to Ben. He extended his arms slightly and at first, Ben didn’t understand what he was doing. But he looked up at his friend’s unsure expression and realized he was reaching out for a hug, but didn’t want to make the first move. 

This was different that the hug in the car. Now that they were standing, right in front of each other, the height difference was more evident. Ben’s head nestled in Reed’s chest, even on his tiptoes. Reed’s long arms rested low on Ben’s back, sending a shiver down his spine. Every part of them seemed to fit against each other, closer than they had ever been before. Ben tilted his chin upwards to look at Reed’s beautiful face. A bright shade of pink crept up his neck and landed rosily on his cheeks as beads of sweat gathered on his forehead. He looked so scared and the steady heartbeat Ben could feel against his head confirmed that. But Reed looked down at Ben and a genuine smile spread across his face. Were they going to kiss now? 

A loud knock on the door ruined the moment and caused Ben and Reed to leap away from each other. 

“Boys? Can I come in?” Mrs. Richards sweet voice filled the room. 

“Yeah, mom.” Reed’s voice was raspy and small. 

“I was just wondering if you boys would rather have chicken or turkey. I made both and I’m about to fix the plates.” 

“Uh, chicken for me, Mrs. Richards. Thank you.” Ben was nervous, but far more composed than Reed, who was sitting on the bed staring into space as he sweat buckets. 

“Reed? Sweetie, are you ok? You’re sweating a lot. Do you have a fever?” The concerned mother took over as she bolted over to Reed and felt his forehead for heat. 

“No, I’m fine, sorry. I’m just hot from getting out of the shower.” Reed smiled and Mrs. Richards was appeased. 

“Ok. Well you boys go ahead and wash your hands. We’ll be ready in five minutes.” 

“Do you need any help mom?” Reed seemed desperate to escape. 

“No, but thank you. See you boys soon.” She smiled and closed the door, even though it wasn’t closed when she came in. 

“You ok?” Ben whispered. 

Reed laughed nervously. “Kissing...it’s just a lot for me. I’m not used to a lot of, uh, physical contact.” 

“We don’t have to, Reed. I know we made a deal, but if don’t want to it’s ok.” Ben sat on the bed next to Reed and resisted the urge to to stroke his arm comfortingly. As much as he wanted to kiss Reed, it wouldn’t be fun for either of them if he was so uncomfortable. 

“No! No, I want to, I-I do…” Reed started firmly, making Ben jump at the sheer volume and force of his voice. 

“Ok, what is it then? You can tell me.” Ben stared at his best friend intensely. He’d never seen him like this before. 

“Boys!! Come on down!” Mrs. Richards yelled from the kitchen, making both boys jump. 

“C’mon, she won’t let up until we eat everything on our plates. We’ll talk after.” Reed smiled as best as he could, but it was strained and Ben knew it. 

The meal was one of the longest Ben had had. He kept his eye on Reed, who shoveled food in his mouth like he hadn’t eaten in days. He politely chatted with Mrs. Richards throughout the meal, which he would normally enjoy, but he was too worried about Reed. 

Mrs. Richards brought Ben’s brownies out with fanfare and Reed thankfully added a heaping portion to his plate. 

“Ben, we’re so happy you could be here. Reed was so excited that you could come.” Her smile grew so large, Ben was surprised a person could smile that big. 

“Mom..” Reed mumbled into his brownies.

Mrs. Richards continued as if she hadn’t heard him. “You boys have always been so sweet together. I’m so happy Reed has someone like you, Ben. Your relationship with each other is just so caring…” Mrs. Richards eyes became glassy and Ben really didn’t understand where she was going with this. 

“Mom!” Reed interjected, harsher this time. 

“Sorry, sorry. I’m just really sentimental today of all days. It is Christmas after all.” She and Reed exchanged a glance Ben didn’t understand. 

“Can we be excused?” Reed stuffed the last bit of brownie in his mouth. 

“Sure, if you’re both finished-” Before Mrs. Richards could finish, Reed gripped Ben’s hand and practically dragged him upstairs. 

“What was that about?” Ben asked when they were safely in Reed’s room, which had a closed door again. 

“I, uh, I told her about the bet. I’m sorry.” Reed looked at his feet ashamedly. 

“You don’t have to be sorry. I don’t mind.” Ben nodded assuredly, trying to coax Reed into saying what was really wrong. 

Ben sat down on the bed and patted the space next to him for Reed to sit. Their legs were pressed against each other when Reed sat down, but neither boy moved, though Reed continually looked down and back up at Ben, checking to make sure it was okay. 

“So…” Ben started. 

“So.” Reed smiled up a little at Reed, but then looked down again. He couldn’t seem to force the words out. Then Ben had an idea. 

“Do you remember when you punched Jack Bennett?” Ben smiled reminiscing. 

“Of course. I got suspended and my knuckles hurt for weeks.” Reed sounded annoyed, but Ben noticed the hint of a smile on his face.

“Yeah, that’s all true. But it was also the moment that I fell in love with you.” Reed’s head shot up, nearly hitting Ben, but instead just grazing his curls across Ben’s face. 

Reed looked like he had so much he wanted to say, but instead his mouth just opened and closed like a fish. Nothing in his expression looked upset of disgusted, so Ben continued. 

“I had never had someone stand up for me like that and it translated across to me as love. I mean, we loved each other in our own way, as friends, but I changed that day. You were so brave and beautiful and I, I just fell for you Reed. I never said a word. I didn’t tell you how I planned dates for us, just in case you took me on one in the future. I didn’t tell you how I was thinking of your lips and how kissable they were whenever I spaced out. I didn’t tell you how my heart feels full and warm when I’m around you, so that I never want to leave. I didn’t tell you any of that before, but I’m telling you now. I’m telling you because we made a promise to kiss each other today and I wanted you to know what’s behind the kiss for me.” Ben found that he wasn’t as scared as he thought he would be, he felt carefree and weightless. Reed didn’t look the same. 

Reed was as white as a ghost and his mouth hung slightly open, the sweating had begun again in full force and he was shaking. Ok, maybe Ben was a little scared. 

“Reed? Please say something?” Ben whispered, barely able to pull his eyes away from Reed’s lips to look in his eyes, who was looking at him like he was a stranger. 

Ben sighed. Maybe Reed was disgusted. “I’m sorry. I think I should go.” Ben walked out the door and headed down the stairs, quickly, hoping to reach Mrs. Richards and thank her before the tears began to spill. He walked around the first floor of the house, but heard the stream of shower water from her bedroom so he made his way to the front door, hoping to get out of the house as soon as possible. 

“Ben!” Reed appeared suddenly at the top of the stairs, a desperate look on his face. When Ben stopped fidgeting with the door, Reed ran down the staircase, tripping on the last step, launching him into Ben. Reed’s weight forced Ben against the front door, but his friend didn’t move. He just looked at Ben with his wide-eyed expression. 

“Reed, I can’t move…” Ben trailed off when Reed’s face changed and he moved even closer. Reed gazed at Ben intently, seeing him in an entirely new way, but a good way. His eyes were full of desire and he never tore his eyes away from Ben as he snaked his hands around Ben’s neck. Ben’s breath caught as Reed’s abdomen rubbed against his. Finally, Reed’s face moved closer, until their noses were touching. Ben’s eyes were already closed. But Reed stopped and Ben’s eyes shot open, alarmed. He was so worried Reed was going to pull away…

“Ben.” Reed’s voice dripped with hunger and it had a certain deepness to it Ben had never encountered before. Reed’s fingers moved to stroke Ben’s cheek, looking at his face like it was a work of art. Ben had never felt so appreciated in his life. He’d never been this close to anyone before. Reed’s warm breath graced his lips, a phantom kiss. He wanted the real thing, but right now he was swelling with joy at Reed’s careful inspection of him. Ben reached his fingers behind Reed’s head and gently played with his curls. He had always wanted to run his fingers through Reed’s hair. Even when they were younger, with no romance behind it, Reed’s curls had always intrigued Ben. 

Reed’s eyes lost their focus on Ben’s features and looked him in the eyes, a playful smile gracing his face. He briefly closed his eyes, giggling at the sensation. Ben grinned, biting his lips, rustling his fingers deeper into Reed’s full head of hair. Reed reached back and gently caressed one of Ben’s hands, gently pulling it forward to his lips. Reed fixed a dreamy gaze full of intent on Ben as he slowly and deliberately kissed Ben’s fingers. Ben practically swooned and let loose a uncontrollable sigh. Reed dropped Ben’s hand back down and his hands returned to the sides of Ben’s face. They inched closer and closer until there was no more space and they were breathing into each other’s mouths. Both of their smiles dropped as their expressions turned into something more significant, knowingly about to change everything. Ben’s hands found their way into Reed’s back pockets, easing him the last inch forward and their lips touched. 

Their eyelids drifted shut as they lost themselves in the feeling of this connection. Reed’s lips were small but soft and Ben’s chapped lips consumed the boy. Ben’s fingers rubbed circles in Reed’s pockets, pushing his abdomen directly against Ben’s, flesh against the door. Reed couldn’t figure out what to do with his hands, it seemed like he wanted to explore every part of Ben. His hands moved from squeezing Ben’s cheeks together, to resting on his hips, all while opening and closing his mouth, deepening the kiss. Eventually, Reed slid his hands up Ben’s shirt, pulling his lower back into him. The chill of Reed’s fingers made Ben shudder brilliantly and he smiled into the kiss. Both boys were pulling each other impossibly closer, even though they couldn’t possibly get any closer. 

Slowly, Reed pulled away, Ben moving an inch forward for every inch Reed moved back. Their lips separated, but smaller kisses ensued as the boys untangled themselves. 

“Sorry, my asthma..” Reed eyed Ben intensely. 

Ben nodded and licked his lips. He didn’t want it to end. 

“My inhaler is in my room…” Reed smiled somewhat deviously and Ben’s eyes widened. 

Reed grabbed hold of Ben’s fingers and led him upstairs happily. 

After a short puff of inhaler, Reed laid on the bed and pulled Ben down on top of him. Before kissing him again, Reed whispered, “Merry Christmas, Ben.” 

“Merry Christmas, Reed.” Ben breathed before lowering himself onto what had previously been known as his best friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> that's all folks! hope you all enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it. I wish everyone a happy holidays and happy new year! :)


End file.
